"J.P.M. Mulder" <tjiepie at worldonline.nl> wrote:
>Now I have a few questions:
>1] Where (what kind of places) should I take samples to be (absolutly) sure
>to find amoebae? (First I have to be sure I can detect those little
>creatures.)
>2] What kind of agar plates do you use? Just a standard medium or something
>special?
>3] What kind of bacteria do you use? E-coli?
>4] How can I concentrate amoebae in a water sample? Centifugation? and if
>so: at what speed? Or should I try filtering?
>5] Is there some literature you can recommend?
>6] Do you have answers or sugestions on questions I forgot to ask?
An easy source for amoebae is an aquarium. Just place a cover slip onto the
surface of the water and let it float a couple of minutes. Then observe under
the microscope (phase contrast makes this a lot easier). A hay infusion can
be another good source of amoebae.
They are a very nice object for observation in the class room. For example,
you can stain some yeast with a vital stain like neutral red and then feed
the amoebae with them. However, I have never tried to maintain them in culture.